University of York Students’ Union criticised for handling of Hong Kong ‘Lennon Wall’ complaints

A
n open letter has been released criticising the University of York Students’ Union (SU) and Doorsafe’s handling of complaints about a ‘Lennon Wall’ display at the university.

The letter was written by former student Elliott Banks and has been signed by over 90 other students and alumni.

It describes how all those who signed are “appalled” at how the situation regarding the Hong Kong display was resolved and urges the University of York to issue an apology to the students from Hong Kong involved.

Hong Kong students were told to remove a “Lennon Wall”, which showed images and newspaper cuttings of the ongoing protests in Hong Kong after members of the university’s Chinese Society complained it was “offensive”.

The protest display was shown at their stand at the University of York Students’ Union’s (SU) freshers’ fair on 5 October. The students agreed to remove anything displayed in Cantonese or Mandarin.

The letter outlines: “S43 of the Education Act 1986 upholds freedom of speech on campus and subsequent guidance released earlier this year by the Department for Education has reinforced the Education Act’s message.

“This was a clear demonstration of freedom of speech and it is disheartening to see those who are concerned about this issue silenced in such manner.”

This dispute is the latest between Hong Kong and mainland Chinese students to occur at a UK university. This month, 200 students from Hong Kong and China clashed in Sheffield, with one student being hit by a bottle and another arrested by police.

This is a very difficult issue for UK institutions because of the large number of people who come to study here from both China and Hong Kong

– Nick Hillman

A spokesman for the University of York said: “We are aware of these reports about a freshers’ fair run by our Students’ Union and are looking into the circumstances.

“We believe universities should provide a platform where a variety of views can be debated and challenged, and we remain committed to creating a positive environment which is fair, welcoming and inclusive.”

A student from Hong Kong stated: “We felt pressured. [Security] ordered us to take it down.”

Nick Hillman, director of the Higher Education Policy Institute (HEPI), stated: “Universities needed to show that they were places of free, fair and civil debate. That is the best way to delve into the complexities of Asian politics.

“This is a very difficult issue for UK institutions because of the large number of people who come to study here from both China and Hong Kong.”

Chinese students form the largest overseas group studying in UK universities, paying tuition fees of up to £40,000 a year. The number has increased from 88,000 studying in the UK in 2013/14 to 107,000 last year. The number of students from Hong Kong last year was 16,350.

A similar “Lennon Wall” was erected at the Piazza on the University of Warwick’s campus on Wednesday 6 November, covering the wall beside Curiositea.